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Dear Friend,
After a packed week in Congress, I’m back home in eastern Connecticut and here with an update on the President’s State of the Union address, my work protecting Social Security, and lots more. As always, thanks for starting your weekend here with me.
The State of the Union Address Shows Our Progress & Points to More Work Ahead
On Tuesday evening, I joined my colleagues from the House and Senate for President Biden’s State of the Union address. I was excited to host my guest for the address, former Connecticut State Representative Joe de la Cruz. Joe represented Groton in Hartford from 2016-2022, he’s a union sheet metal worker, and he’s Vice President of the critical submarine supplier Hillery Co. in Groton. As if that weren’t enough, Joe is also a leader in helping our region battle back against the opioid epidemic as the co-founder of “Community Speaks Out”. Before we headed into the House chamber to listen to the President’s address, Joe and I attended a reception with new Leader Congressman Hakeem Jeffries and other colleagues. Eastern Connecticut is at the tip of the spear when it comes to America’s manufacturing resurgence, and people like Joe de la Cruz are a big part of the reason why. I’ve been honored to work alongside him to advance both of these crucial efforts, and it was a pleasure to host him for the President's address.
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| On Tuesday, Rep. Courtney hosted former CT State Rep. Joe de la Cruz (left) as his guest for the President's State of the Union address. Click here to read more about their night in the Day. |
The past two years have been a period of rapid recovery and forward progress for our country, and the State of the Union address reflected that. Two years ago, Main Streets were still shuttered, families across the country were facing uncertain futures, and our nation’s economy was balanced on a knife’s edge. Now, the script has been flipped and eastern CT’s booming economy is a huge part of the story. 800,000 manufacturing jobs have been created in the last two years across our country – the fastest growth in decades – and Joe de la Cruz can attest to that growth in CT-02. Hillery Co. and many other local manufacturers have seen their work orders grow, we’ve got infrastructure projects fueling jobs and economic progress throughout the region, and our workforce training programs are bursting at the seams with interest. Now is the time to build on that progress, first by avoiding default on the full faith and credit of the United States, which would wreck the economy, and next by investing in education and job training that can connect even more Americans to these new and growing job opportunities.
We’ve still got important work left ahead. The new crackdown on fentanyl screening at the border that the President declared, as well as a new commitment to treatment and preventions, is a unifying agenda that Joe de la Cruz and his wife, Tammy, can attest is so important to creating healthy communities. Achieving these goals and making America healthier, safer, and more competitive is going to take bipartisan work in Congress, and I’m ready to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to help get it done.
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| Click here to watch Rep. Courtney and Joe de la Cruz's interview with NBC CT |
Reminding my Colleagues: Social Security is Insurance, Not an Entitlement
Every day, my office hears from people worried about Social Security benefits being dragged into a looming battle over not raising the debt ceiling—which is a legal authorization that enables the U.S. to meet already existing financial obligations, not to authorize new spending. Over 150,000 people in CT-02 depend on Social Security, and I consider it my sacred duty to protect and expand the program, not use it as a cash cow. On Monday, I headed down to the House floor to remind people that Social Security is an insurance program, not an “entitlement” as an alarming number of my colleagues have attempted to brand it. Watch here:
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| Click here to watch Rep. Courtney's floor speech reminding his colleagues that Social Security is an insurance, not an "entitlement" |
It was good to hear during the President’s State of the Union Address that apparently no one wants to cut Social Security and Medicare. Still, it’s extremely concerning that some members of Congress have indeed talked openly and publicly about the fact that they want to do “entitlement reform”, which is a prerequisite go after Social Security and Medicare. That’s a very off target and fundamentally flawed proposal. “Entitlement” is not a legal term. It’s not a budget term. It’s a political term, and it’s an attempt to try to mask the fact that Social Security, since President Franklin signed it into law over 80 years ago, is a social insurance program. We all know this – just look at your paycheck! The withholding for Social Security is separate from your federal taxes, which goes into our country’s operating budget, and it’s designated as the Federal Insurance Contributions Act, or FICA. Again, this is an insurance program that provides critical support for older people who are retired, young people who have lost a parent, and people with a disability. It’s a pillar of middle-class security, and I’m as committed as ever to strengthening the program.
We’re now less than four months away from what would be a catastrophic and needless default on our national debt. Congress has worked across the aisle to avoid this since the early 1900s, and to allow the treasury to sell bonds so that we can pay the bills and address our country’s biggest issues – whether it’s taking on the fentanyl crisis, ensuring our national security, or providing a quality education to young people. House Leadership must act in bipartisan fashion to raise the debt ceiling and protect the full faith and credit of the United States.
Former U.S. Navy Pacific Commander: AUKUS is "Supremely Important"
China has been a hot topic of conversation this week after our Department of Defense took down a CCP surveillance balloon off the coast of South Carolina. Well, don’t take it from me, take it from retired 4-star admiral Harry Harris, former Indo-PACOM Commander: AUKUS is “supremely important” when it comes to countering the CCP's lawless aggression, and Congress needs to work swiftly in bipartisan fashion to make it a success. I penned an op-ed with Breaking Defense last month, laying out how Congress should amend the McMahon Act in order to deliver on AUKUS’s core mission, providing the Australian Navy with a nuclear-powered submarine fleet "at the earliest possible date”. We’ve done this before – after WWII, when the U.S. shared nuclear-propulsion technology with the British—and I’m confident we’ve got what it takes do it again. In a House Armed Services Committee Hearing on Tuesday, I asked ADM Harris and Dr. Melanie Sisson about the importance sharing nuclear technology with our Australian allies – both to support our Navy and a free and secure Indo-Pacific region. Watch here:
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| Click here to watch Rep. Courtney ask retired 4-star admiral Harry Harris, former Indo-PACOM Commander about the importance of sharing nuclear technology with our Australian allies |
In March, we’re expecting the first hard details of an agreed-upon path forward for AUKUS. Nothing is for certain, but it’s clear that eastern Connecticut’s expertise in shipbuilding and submarines are critical to making the agreement work. In Congress, we’ve already secured a big bipartisan win for AUKUS – passage of the U.S.-Australia Submarine Officer Pipeline Act as an amendment in 2023 NDAA – which calls for the creation of a training program to help Australian Navy submarine officers learn nuclear submarine operation from U.S. Navy submariners. My colleagues and I are ready to keep that bipartisan work for AUKUS going in 2023.
Discussing Career and Technical Education with U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona
On Tuesday, I had a great meeting with Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona – our first since he joined me for visits to Grasso Tech and Thames River Magnet School! Eastern CT’s successful workforce training programs have helped attract thousands of new manufacturing jobs to our region. Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs like the ones offered at Grasso Tech are connecting young people to those careers, and currently have packed waiting lists. Secretary Cardona is a graduate from a technical school (H.C. Wilcox Technical High School in Meriden!) and he’s a big believer in expanding these programs to more high school students. In the recent omnibus we passed in December, CTE had its funding increased by $100M. The Secretary and I discussed how these funds can be used to expand these critical programs in our region.
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| On Tuesday, Rep. Courtney met with U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona – their first meeting since Sec. Cardona joined Rep. Courtney for visits to Grasso Tech and Thames River Magnet School in Groton |
After my meeting with Secretary Cardona, I headed to a House Education and Workforce Committee hearing to speak about the importance to CTE. Watch that here:
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| Click here to watch Rep. Courtney ask about the need to expand Career and Technical Education programs |
Hosting the Office of Nuclear Energy and the Finnish Ambassador to the U.S. for a Discussion on Spent Nuclear Fuel Solutions
Solving the issue of spent nuclear fuel in southeastern CT and across the country is crucial to growing our nuclear energy production, and to achieving lower costs and a zero-carbon emission future. At the Department of Energy, Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy Dr. Kathryn Huff and Deputy Assistant Secretary Dr. Kim Petry are overseeing a federally funded consent-based process to identify new interim storage sites for spent nuclear fuel. They recently joined me in southeastern CT to meet with community leaders and provided a good update on their work. On Wednesday, Rep. Mike Levin and I hosted Dr. Huff and Dr. Petry for a meeting with Finnish Ambassador to the United States Mikko Hautala. Finland has been successful in creating a long-term storage site for their spent nuclear fuel – and they’ve kept local communities involved and heard throughout the process.
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| On Wednesday, Rep. Courtney and Rep. Mike Levin hosted Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy Dr. Kathryn Huff, Deputy Assistant Secretary Dr. Kim Petry, and Finnish Ambassador to the U.S. Mikko Hautala for a discussion on Finland's success creating a long-term, consent-based solution to spent nuclear fuel storage |
Keeping our towns involved and engaged with the ongoing process to find interim storage sites is my top priority on this issue. Spent fuel rods were never meant to be stored for the long-term at the Millstone Power Plant in Waterford or the decommissioned Connecticut Yankee plant in Haddam Neck. Importantly, Dr. Huff and Dr. Petry are leading a “consent-based” siting process, which means the communities that host spent fuel material in the future will make the choice to do so. Through funding I helped authorize in Congress, the Department of Energy announced last fall that it is making $16 million in federal funds available to communities showing initial interest in hosting spent fuel. This process is going to take some time, but it will ultimately lead to the removal of spent fuel rods from Waterford and Haddam Neck.
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| Click here to read more about Assistant Secretary Dr. Huff's and Deputy Assistant Secretary Dr. Petry's visit to eastern CT in the Courant |
I’m glad I could catch up with Dr. Huff, Dr. Petry, Ambassador Hautala, and bipartisan House Spent Nuclear Fuel Solutions Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Mike Levin to discuss our allies’ success on this issue. Don’t hesitate to give my office a call for more information on the Department of Energy’s process to identify interim storage sites and remove spent fuel from southeastern CT.
Thanks for taking some time to read my update. If we can be of any assistance, don't hesitate to give my Norwich office a call at (860) 886-0139. Have a great weekend!
Sincerely,
Joe Courtney
Member of Congress
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